Bangkok - In the initiation of ITUC-AP, ATUC/SARTUC/Arab TUC Coordination Meeting was concluded on 17-18 May 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand. The representatives of the Arab Trade Union Confederation (ArabTUC), South Asia Regional Trade Union Confederation (SARTUC), and ASEAN Trade Union Council (ATUC) identified five priority actions for the protection of migrant from the meeting.

In the initiation of ITUC-AP, ATUC/SARTUC/Arab TUC Coordination Meeting was concluded on 17-18 May 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand. The representatives of the Arab Trade Union Confederation (ArabTUC), South Asia Regional Trade Union Confederation (SARTUC), and ASEAN Trade Union Council (ATUC) identified five priority actions for the protection of migrant from the meeting.
1. Campaign for the ratification and application of ILO migrant labour conventions;
2. Sharing of information on activities through websites and social media;
3. Establish information centers or Migrant Resources Centers for networking, awareness, pre-departure orientation and post-arrival programs and direct services by unions;
4. Organizing migrant workers in both destination and origin countries; and
5. Building the capacity of affiliates’ focal points for labour migration and a common ASEANTUC/ Arab TUC/ SARTUC Information System on Migrant Workers.
In the opening remarks, Brother Noriyuki Suzuki, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation – Asia Pacific (ITUC-AP), echoed ITUC-AP’s continued support in implementing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on protecting migrant workers signed by the three organizations in Kochi, India in August 2015. The MoU’s rights-based approach put trade unions at the forefront of advancing the rights of migrant workers.
The three organizations' accomplishments and on-going initiatives on labour migration and the actions in the MoU reflected the five priority actions. Their representatives will discuss these with their governing bodies and agreed to report progress of implementation in their next meeting.
With the support of ITUC-AP, two representatives each from ArabTUC, SARTUC, ATUC and ITUC-AP participated in the meeting.
Source: ITUC-AP/ASEANTUC